contest a short and a decisive one; that you place at the control of the
Government for the work at least 400,000 men and $400,000,000. That
number of men is about one-tenth of those of proper ages within the
regions where apparently _all_ are willing to engage, and the sum is
less than a twenty-third part of the money value owned by the men who
seem ready to devote the whole. A debt of $600,000,000 _now_ is a less
sum per head than was the debt of our Revolution when we came out of
that struggle, and the money value in the country now bears even a
greater proportion to what it was _then_ than does the population.
Surely each man has as strong a motive _now_ to _preserve_ our liberties
as each had _then_ to _establish_ them.

A right result at this time will be worth more to the world than ten
times the men and ten times the money. The evidence reaching us from the
country leaves no doubt that the material for the work is abundant, and
that it needs only the hand of legislation to give it legal sanction and
the hand of the Executive to give it practical shape and efficiency. One
of the greatest perplexities of the Government is to avoid receiving
troops faster than it can provide for them. In a word, the people will
save their Government if the Government itself will do its part only
indifferently well.

It might seem at first thought to be of little difference whether the
present movement at the South be called "secession" or "rebellion." The
movers, however, well understand the difference. At the beginning they
knew they could never raise their treason to any respectable magnitude
by any name which implies _violation_ of law. They knew their people
possessed as much of moral sense, as much of devotion to law and order,
and as much pride in and reverence for the history and Government of
their common country as any other civilized and patriotic people. They